Our 5 most popular videos of 2015

One hundred of some of Canadas best classic vehicles have been sold to a Chinese buyer who plans to open a museum in Beijing.

Alyn Edwards, Driving

You may be surprised which videos were this year's biggest hits

by
Clayton Seams | December 28, 2015

Small

Medium

Large

In 2015, Driving made 137 videos – covering everything from million-dollar hyper-cars to bargain family sedans, along with car shows, auctions and other events. Among all these, we’ve rounded up the five most viewed videos of the year. The winning video might surprise you!

#5. What it feels like to be locked in a hot car for an hour

In what has to be our most physically demanding video of the year, our intrepid reporter Lorraine Sommerfeld locked herself in a car in the middle of a Toronto summer afternoon. Temperatures in the car quickly went from hot to uncomfortable to downright dangerous. After temperatures reached a scalding 50° C in less than an hour, Lorraine climbed out of the car unharmed but with a new appreciation of how important it is not to leave pets and children unattended.

#4. 2015 Toronto Auto Show

There were a lot of important Canadian debuts at the 2015 Canadian International Auto Show. Cool concepts included the sporty Kia Stinger and the intriguing quasi-retro Mini Superleggera. But the star of the show was the Ford GT concept which could see production in late 2016 as a 2017 model. We also learned at the show that this American supercar was going to be built in Canada.

#3. Family cars at the New York International Auto Show

Our third most popular video was also from a North American auto show. The 2015 New York International Auto Show was packed with debuts of popular sedans; our video highlights the unveiling of the new Chevy Malibu, Kia Optima and Honda Civic. Also announced was the hotted up Civic Type-R, featuring silly amounts of turbo horsepower.

#2. Beijing-bound classic car collection

This video shows the amazing 100+ car collection that was bought by a single Chinese buyer. The collection was amassed by Jim Ratsoy, who bought his first classic car, a Model T, from an Alberta farmer. The story is also interesting because, due to China’s strict smog laws, none of these classics will be legally allowed to be driven on public roads. The Chinese buyer plans to start a museum with the cars in Beijing.

Our most popular video of the year features what is also the fastest-accelerating car we drove on Canadian soil this year. Thanks to copious amounts of turbo boost, the AWD Golf produces a Lamborghini-shaming 740-horsepower. The results are exactly as dramatic as you would imagine. The tuning magic was performed by Canadian firm HPA Motorsports; they specialize in making more humble Audi and Volkswagen products capable of outrunning Ferraris.